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25 cops, all eyewitnesses to 2001 murder, turned hostile during Dubey’s trial

Hindustan Times, Kanpur | ByHT Correspondent
Jul 07, 2020 07:05 AM IST

Manoj Shukla, brother of deceased BJP leader Santosh Shukla, said he had immense faith in chief minister Yogi Adityanath and police officials who are now out to nab Vikas Dubey.

Four months after murdering BJP leader Santosh Shukla inside Kanpur Dehat’s Shivli police station in 2001, fugitive gangster Vikas Dubey surrendered in court with several politicians accompanying him, recalled Santosh’s brother Manoj Shukla.

“Politicians accompanied him in court at the time of surrender. Their gesture was to ensure he did not get caught by the police,” he said.

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That was the first of many shocks for the Shukla family, he said. What is more, 25 policemen, all eyewitnesses to the killing, turned hostile one after another. In an apparent first, the investigating officer turned hostile in court. Dubey was acquitted.

“Had they taken a stand then, what happened now at Bikru village could have been prevented. Their testimonies would have put Vikas Dubey in jail. Unfortunately, this did not happen,” he said.

Manoj Shukla, who had pursued the case, met the then Kanpur Dehat district magistrate, the then special prosecuting officer (SPO) officers and police officials many a times during those days. “No help was extended at any stage,” Shukla alleged. The prosecution wing functions under the DM.

But Manoj Shukla said he had immense faith in chief minister Yogi Adityanath and police officials who are now out to nab Vikas Dubey for killing eight policemen in cold blood.

“The year 2001 was different and 2020 is different. This time, I am absolutely sure the police will get him,” he said.

Additional director general, Kanpur, Jai Narayan Singh has sought all the documents related to the Santosh Shukla murder case, which is likely to be reopened.

He has asked superintendent of police, Kanpur Dehat, Anurag Vats to look into Vikas Dubey’s old cases. Similarly, he asked for all files related to murders of Kaushal Kishore Tripathi and Shri Krishna Mishra in 2002, officials said.

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